Obamascare

I am for universal health care. For me health care is about care, not profit. An immediate computation (see below) show that at least one third of the health care cost in the USA is plutocratic gouging.

Although covered by an expensive health plan in California, I went to a French public hospital to have my daughter (motivated strictly by the better health care there, something that became obvious on… the phone from half a world away; the pregnancy was difficult and I feel sure that my daughter is alive today thanks to that decision).I do not like Obamacare, mostly because it’s a red herring. The main problem of USA health care is that it’s health profit first, instead of health care.

Plutocrats Baucus & Liz Fowler Care To Profit, Stupid

Obama could have started to fix that with presidential executive orders (removing the chains that prevent Medicare to negotiate with health care providers; he did not do it, and he is still not doing it, as he has everybody hypnotized by “Obamacare”; an executive order there would have more effect than Obamacare).

Obamacare is also about class: you can pay more, you get more; if you are poorer, you get a substandard plan (hilariously, most of the colored ones get the substandard “bronze” plan!You colored you bronze).

Also Obamacare obviously will not solve the covering of the uncovered, as its Byzantine structure depends upon the Internal Revenue Service (something the true underclass in the USA has nothing to do with; I know several underclass people and families from several states, by the way; when was the last time Obama talked with somebody who owns just a few torn clothes and a dog? well, I am actually friends with a few of them. We talk.)

True the expansion of Medicaid may help. But Medicaid is state, and Obama controls Medicare, more than Medicaid, so why did not he want to help more?

I have had a full subscription to the New York Times for more than three decades, but this week I have been wondering if I should not cancel it.

An example: an editorial in the NYT on Friday claimed that none of the 150 million employer health insurance in the USA would be cancelled.

However, I had just I got a cancellation notice from my employer provided Aetna health plan, effective within weeks, because my plan is “substandard”. I sent a one sentence comment informing the New York Times of that fact. It was not published. Since the Obamacare roll-out 50% of my comments were censored, the worst since 2003. After I complained, that was increased to 90% (and apparently 100% in the last days).

Instead we are submitted to a deluge of anti-French and anti-German “facts”, revealed by the New York Times. Germany, not Obamacare, is causing a recession. Obviously France and Germany prevent the market and the “exchanges” to do their work.

Other facts from the New York Times’ parallel universe:

1) Germany is “hacking away at French social services“. The French Socialist Party, which controls the presidency, the national assembly, the senate, and the regions of France will be surprised to learn it is “hacking away” socialism under German orders. My comments on that were censored.

I guess it’s better for the New York Times to talk about imaginary hacking than about the French 75% tax on high incomes (above one million euros; precisely to prevent “hacking away” at social services). My comments on this were censored too.

2) The New York Times also informed us that France caused the Great Depression of the 1930s (never mind that the referenced Irwin paper was short on ideas and scholarship). The New York Times insisted that “Germany in 2013, is like France in 1930“. So Germany in 2013 is causing a Great Depression, same as France in the 1930s.

[Why don’t we talk about USA plutocrats sending emergency war supplies to Nazi Germany in 1939 to fight off France? (oops, that would be “anti-American”)]

3) Krugman pretends that he found a counter-example to the fact that loose monetary policy leads to higher interest rates, namely, you guessed it, France in the 1920s.

I presented a full page of why the effect was due to special circumstances, namely half the working age males in France were incapacitated, or dead. Showing Krugman’s scholarship missed the elephant in the bathroom: censored. Naturlich.

4) Observing that Southern Europeans are still richer than the Germans is no news fit to print in the Times. Also censored.

4) Basically, insists Krugman, Germany is causing the American government shut-down (by making the Eurozone an export demon to China).

Let me suggest another bad thing Germany did to the USA: Obamacare. It’s obviously the fault of Bismarck, a German Chancellor who introduced universal health care around 1860. Bismarck was even anti-market, thus anti-American, as the insurance companies in Germany are not for profit. Repeat: NOT for profit.

[If the insurance companies were NOT for profit, I would be for Obamacare. Actually, even as it is, I am for Obamacare… but it will not work, anyway, as its own gouging will strangle it.]

USA health care cost in excess of 18% of GDP, and ranks last in objective markers of care (rank 46 behind all developed nations, and quite a few developing ones). Germany, France, and the Netherlands spend 12% of GDP and rank best in health care worldwide (although Italy does nearly as well, with 9% GDP). Thus one can fairly say, observing that 18% – 12% = 6%, around 30% of the cost of health care in the USA is pure plutocratic profit.

It is apparently dawning on the New York Times that Europeans are not just NON-American, they have built a NON-American world. An alternative world. NON plutocratic, increasingly. The danger is extreme. According to another NYT hysterical November editorial, the republic is threatened by “populists”.

“Plutocrats vs. Populists” opines that: “HERE’S the puzzle of America today: the plutocrats have never been richer, and their economic power continues to grow, but the populists, the wilder the better, are taking over.” Proof of that the “genteel” Summers was not appointed because of “populist” opposition.While American “philanthrocapitalists” [sic!] are fighting against malaria. (Actually the Gates are interfering nefariously with the world health CARE system, many scientists are increasingly complaining.)

All this anti-European hysteria of course has to do with Obama’s Secretary of Health & Human Services declaring this week that Obamacare was a “debacle“, or it has to do with Germany so anxious to hear more from Mr. Snowden about NSA industrial espionage that it sent a member of the national assembly to pose with Snowden.

What the New York Times proposes is to replace the Republic with philanthropic plutocrats.

The USA got tremendous mileage for nearly a century from the war between the (French) Republic and various German (USA supported) fascist racial plutocrats. But now, no more. The New York times has to fight the bicephalic Franco-German republic. Well, it will not win.

As the Athenians demonstrated 24 centuries ago even a tiny Republic of the People can defeat a giant plutocracy (Achaemenid Persia). France, Germany and their immediate satellites do not make a tiny Republic, but one roughly as large demographically and economically as the USA. The European Union exported in 2012 for 2.2 trillion dollars, more than China, and about 50% more than the USA (in spite of a very strong Euro).

The Washington based International Monetary Fund has joined the American chorus berating Germany (repeating like a deranged parrot the arguments in the NYT). Howl in vain. Only one opinion matters: that of the sister republic, France. And what France believes is that she has not been serious enough and she needs to Germanize herself. The process has started: unions are starting to sit on company boards, as in Germany.

France, like Germany, believes that the economy ought to be industrious first. The world first working steam engine and steam boat was built by a French university professor motoring down a German river in 1707. That was no accident: at the time the somewhat crazed plutocrat, the so called “Roi Soleil” (Sun King) was not creating the best condition for innovation. Crazed plutocracy is not the best for anyone, but crazed plutocrats.

Obamacare was written by a Vice President at the largest health insurance company, Well Point, Liz Fowler. Under plutocratic senator Baucus. Ms. Fowler is back in the for huge profit business, big time, racking up millions off the inchoating Obamacare.

But listen to Bill Moyers, a sedate, ancient, experienced commentator from PBS. Moyers talks about “treason“, and says the situation is unheard of since the nineteenth century (when senators were not elected). He says that one should call it for what it is; a “leveraged buy-out of democracy“. He recommends to get ‘busy”.

23 Responses to “Obamascare”

Indeed gmax, indeed… For those who don’t know: sheeple = sheep + people… I think that the fact plutocrats are frantic (NYT is controlled by a plutocratic family whose name starts with an S…), from Google, to Oracle, about Obamascare is pretty telling. Interesting scares ahead…
PA

After the NYT’s Judy Miller pushed the Iraq “WMD” propaganda to justify Bush’s war, I decided the Times would never get another nickel from me. Haven’t looked back. Miss the Sunday paper though.

And your 30% health profit figure matches up nicely with the average health insurance “overhead” of about 28% (all that paper pushing and CEO salaries, don’t you know).

Morris Berman has written several books, the latest being “Why America Failed”, about how America has always been basically a nation of hustlers. He opens WAF with a quote from de Tocqueville,

“As one digs deeper into the national character of the Americans, one sees that they have sought the value of everything in this world only in the answer to this single question: how much money will it bring in?” letter to Ernest de Chabrol, June 9, 1831

That observation has certainly been borne out.

So naturally WAF sold less than 2,000 copies while Sarah Palin’s ghost-written opus sold 2.7 million. American exceptionalism, indeed.

Thanks bowtiejack! much appreciated! 🙂 I did not realize that Judiy Miller was making up WMD stuff. My main indignation related to tom Friedman. In any case, the NYT’s main mine was not different from FOX news then. Out of masochism i was watching much FOX then; my conclusion is that all journalists talking about international things ought to take a course in international law.
But then yesterday we had 60 Minutes with that general from Guantanamo saying incredible absurdities about torture, and then evidence the CIA spied on the attorney/client conversations, etc…

Thanks for the uncanny observation of de Tocqueville. I read it to my spouse, who was stunned. The fundamental reason arose from the “barbarous years“, which solidly established the ultra-exploitative mentality. And then the conquest of the West proved the concept.

Jefferson thought conquering the West may take a 1,000 years… Although if he had multiplied his own contribution by future president, he would have ended as it did, namely 50 years or so.

Thereupon the difficulty: the USA, a great gift, arose from too much blood. solution: the truth. Not atonment, no excuses, just the truth, and using it for repairs, looking forward.
PA

What Judy Miller did was simply mainline what Cheney and company fed her, operating as a sort of propaganda apparatchik for the administration while pretending to be a reporter. It’s ever thus, it seems, with the plutocrats and their courtiers. They do ever so much want to be “helpful” to the powerful.

I listened to him recently and he was trying to be a little more optimistic about the ACA. But had to point out the “Rube-Goldberg” character of the plan in addition to the obvious missing elements (like a public option). He was a little more sympathetic to Obama, and he pointed to some of the democrats that helped make sure that the public option failed. Bill is essentially an enraged optimist, and thinks we’ll get through this. He’s a true journalist, and commentator watching out for the common man.

In any case, I’m somewhat hopeful that the ACA has at least hit the broken health care system “hornet’s nest” with a stick. A more prudent gardener would smother it in a plastic bag and replace it with carefully tended honey bees. The way the ACA is going, lots of people are going to get hurt, and confusion will reign….but it’s better than the status quo. I think we’re I a dynamic system now, and predicting the outcome is difficult or impossible for everyone, even K street.

I think in 3 months, we’ll know more. It will give this flawed “reform”, time to penetrate, do good or ill, …..we’ll see. All I know is that there has been some slight loosening of the grip of the plutocrats, it’s time for some fancy Aikido moves to drop the monster to the ground. If enough people are aware maybe we can deal with the beast.

I do agree that there are lots of good things in the ACA (no pre-existing conditions, etc.).

However, as the plutos wrote the ACA, and they are generally like hyper smart crocodiles, I doubt it’s not going to work… for them.

You are also an enraged optimist. Me too. However, I am also a courageous hyper pessimist. even a hyper catastrophist. The reason is that the world I had in my youth, I saw it die forever. Don’t forget my dad was born and raised in Africa. Came to France in combat, in uniform. An American made uniform…
I have advocated the necessity of catastrophic calculus. Basically one computes what the worst possible case, then one takes measures to foil it.

So here is the catastrophic version: ACA explodes. How? Premiums explode, affordable plans are not affordable, Congress refuses to finance them, the
underclass does not enroll (individuals from the underclass already view ACA as sci fi on another galaxy).

People get enraged, call Oblahblah the Liar In Chief.

Republicans acquire total control of senate and congress. Obama, already the Tea Party president,(“no government”), de facto abdicate, even rhetorically.

This being said, I will try to help with the aikido. But it can come out of truth only. The New York Times has literally insulted me in the last few weeks. Not just by censoring me, but by having some of their “trusted commenters” calling me names (like “liar”). My polite answers were not published(of course).

This means that powerful plutocrats have given the word (my computer/cloud was also tinkered with!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

The level of hysteria is astounding. Does the NYT really believes that, if they just say so, people are not going to realize their employer provided health insurance plans are being cancelled (as mine was Friday)?

This degree of insanity reminds me of 2003. And I think that, if the plutocratic party plays it real well, it will come out ahead.

Why? Because people are extremely misinformed, and, differently from, say, France, they are afraid to take to the streets. Anyway they are too misinformed to know what they should be indignant about.
It may all well backfire. Once enough people have been called “substandard” by whom they will view as the Liar in Chief…
PA

Yes, Old Geezer Pilot (and welcome back, we have been missing you!) Obama could have freed medicare from its chains in the first minute, by executive order. Then it could have left it to its discretion to function as a private plan (but without plutocrats vampirizing and no advertizing budget, plu economy of scale, it would have been much cheaper). Then Medicare would have made money (while forcing the privates to go cheaper and compete with each other in cheapness).

Then, with the surplus, Medicare could have been open where medicaid was closed. Next the privates would have become irrelevant. Obama actually toyed with my solution (I learned) at some point (or claimed he was). The question for gossipy history will be; was Obama a fool or completely corrupt, ot both, or a naive child, or all of the above?

In any case, history will not judge Obama tenderly. As Moyers said: treason.

All this is somewhat irrelevant, now the battle is engaged. The party of No Government (= Tea Party, = Obama’s party, = Sequestration party, = begging plutocrat party, = “Bipartisan” Party ) will use the occasion for a huge reactionary backlash, a la 9/11… This is going to be fun…
PA

I am fanatically for universal health care. I actually travelled to France for pregnancy to use the public hospital system there (my USA health insurance paid for it).And this is why against Obamacare.

Obamacare is not oriented against the main problem of USA health care: cost. Now Obama is going to use the IRS to make sure the underclass gets health care? Come again?

Obamascare is a red herring: Obama could increase the powers of Medicare tomorrow by executive order. He won;t because he is not genuine. Liz Fowler, a health insurance VP from the largest for profit insurance in the USA wrote the program, but it’s bogged down in greed, and corruption, as expected, before it even got started.

Me too. I was actually depressed like I have never been in by life, when Obama’s presidency started, and I understood my friend had double crossed me, and that, all the efforts, years, good will and reflection I put into his candidacy would turn into a disaster for me in nearly all ways. And it was.
PA

Zorry zorry, Amna, zo zorry, I am repeating, just like a star struck Obama parrot, what my master great toubab The One Obama told me. Well, anyway, what’s your problem? You don’t revere great for profit insurance industry chiefs of private profit health marketplace taking care of you miserable substandard consumer poorly exchanging with no mental coverage obviously? What’s wrong with round number? Now it’s going to take a millennium to fill up Great Obama IRS Reich with happy exchangist consumer on marketplace! All others pay fine, which is tax, said great Supremes!
PA

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